News

The ARSIG webinar on newer federal data sharing and open access rules will be held on Wednesday via Zoom.  Webinar information is below.

Data Sharing: Finding and Understanding Federal Regulations

Wednesday, February 28, 2-3pm ET/1-2pm CT/12-1pm MT/ 11am-12pm PT

https://tennessee.zoom.us/j/82597073812

Brianne Dosch (Assistant Professor and Head of Data and Digital Scholarship at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville) will join us to speak on the newer federal data sharing and open access rules that will impact the practices of agricultural researchers on our campuses.

Questions and comments can be directed to Maggie Albro (malbro@utk.edu), ARSIG convener.

The USAIN Awards & Honors Committee is pleased to announce we are now accepting applications for our biennial conference scholarships. This year, USAIN 2024 is a joint conference with the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL) and will be held May 5-8, 2024, hosted by the Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI.

See scholarship application details at https://usain.org/Awards

Application deadline March 15, 2024.

Conference information: https://usain.org/2024-Meeting

Submit applications to Melody Royster, Chair, USAIN Awards & Honor Committee at mroyster@ufl.edu

USDA will share plans for enhancing policy, infrastructure, and outreach to make results of the research it funds more readily available and accessible by the public. There will be time for questions and answers.

Tuesday, February 20, 2024 12:00-1:00pm ET

More information and registration is at:
https://www.nal.usda.gov/about-us/events/public-access-2024

The USDA’s National Agricultural Library is excited to announce a second public feedback period on the USDA’s updated Implementation Plan to Increase Public Access to USDA-funded Research Results. Following the 2022 White House Office of Science and Technology Policy memorandum: Ensuring Free, Immediate, and Equitable Access to Federally Funded Research, all government agencies have been guided to create or update existing public access policies.

This second public feedback period is to allow opportunity for feedback from interested parties not widely heard from during the first period, including but not limited to members of the public; principal investigators; research institutions, including minority-serving institutions; research libraries; data repositories; and data scientists.

If you are interested in Open Science and increasing public access to the important research funded by the USDA, please leave a comment at Regulations.gov. Comments will be accepted until 5pm Eastern time February 28, 2024.

The USDA National Agricultural Library (NAL), in partnership with Montana State University (MSU) Library and MSU Diversity & Inclusion Student Commons, will host a hybrid, two-part event at Montana State University Library and ONLINE on health equity and advocacy on Wednesday, January 24th from 12 pm – 5 pm (Eastern)/ 11 am – 4 pm (Central)/ 10 am – 3 pm (Mountain)/ 9 am – 2 pm (West).

Part one of the event will include a student panel discussing their healthy equity experiences, information from local healthcare providers, nutrition programming, and resources from NAL staff. Part two of the event will involve editing and adding health equity content on Wikipedia. Full day attendance is not required.

We hope you’ll consider joining us virtually (or in person if you’re near Bozeman)! Please register here: https://www.zoomgov.com/meeting/register/vJIsduGrrjgvHeIxjio2yB1mI_2SzTpF6H8

AI and Agricultural Research/Publishing

Wednesday, January 31, 2-3pm ET/1-2pm CT/12-1pm MT/ 11am-12pm PT

Suzanne Allard (Associate Dean for Research, College of Communication & Information at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville) will join us to speak on the status of AI and how AI is being used in the research and publication process by agricultural faculty.

Data Sharing: Finding and Understanding Federal Regulations

Wednesday, February 28, 2-3pm ET/1-2pm CT/12-1pm MT/ 11am-12pm PT

Brianne Dosch (Assistant Professor and Head of Data and Digital Scholarship at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville) will join us to speak on the newer federal data sharing and open access rules that will impact the practices of agricultural researchers on our campuses.

Questions and comments can be directed to Maggie Albro (malbro@utk.edu), ARSIG convener.

Please join us for a USAIN/CBHL virtual networking event Thursday, December 7th from 3:00-4:00 pm Eastern time.

The goal is to have some fun connecting/reconnecting and learn from each other. We hope this time together will make your work brighter and easier. We will have some time for networking one on one as well as in smaller groups. There will be two breakout sessions (see topics below); you can join one topic for each session.

1. Artificial Intelligence and Libraries: Helpful or Hindrance?

How are LIbraries using AI already or could use it? From cataloging to marketing efforts, AI had the potential to increase efficiency, remove barriers, but also to persist bias in systems and privacy concerns.

• Let's share how we could use AI such as ChatGPT could be used in programming, marketing, and other ideas.

• Maybe we will have a mini contest to see who can come up with the wackiest conference session title using ChartGPT, as a way to tiptoe into playing with AI.

1. Conference Session Brainstorming

Do you want to write a paper or poster abstract for the USAIN/CBHL Annual Meeting but haven’t had the time or mental energy to think of an idea and sit down and write it? Then join us for an informal, optional writing session! (Adapted from SC/MLAmeeting)

• Brainstorm with others about your paper or poster ideas

• Get feedback from colleagues on your draft abstract

• Make space on your calendar to write and submit an abstract

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We will be trying the platform Hopin this time, to do automatic shuffling of participants for networking. You can join by registering at the following link: 

https://hopin.com/events/usain-networking-november-2023

1. 3-3:05pm: Introduction (Click on Sessions)
2. 3:05-3:25pm: Networking (Click on Networking)
3. 3:25-3:45pm: Breakout rooms (Click on Sessions)
   1. Impact of AI
   2. USAIN/CBHL Conference Session Brainstorm & Research Activity
4. 3:45-3:55pm: Networking (Click on Networking)
5. 3:55pm-4pm: Close (Click on Sessions)
6. Optional 4:-4:30pm: continue networking

We hope you will join us May 5-8, 2024, in beautiful East Lansing, MI for the 19^th biennial conference of the United States Agricultural Information Network (USAIN) and the first joint conference with the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL). The conference is being hosted by the Michigan State University Libraries and will take place on MSU’s campus at the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center.

In addition to a variety of informative and educational conference sessions, we will be holding our Awards Dinner at the R. E. Olds Transportation Museum in downtown Lansing, where you will have a chance to learn about Michigan’s – and Lansing’s – rich history of transportation.

The theme of the 2024 conference is “Growing Together and Branching Out”, and the conference planning committees are working hard to put together an exciting program. Please visit the conference webpage for more details and updates.

We look forward to seeing you in May!

- Andrea Kepsel and Suzi Teghtmeyer, USAIN/CBHL 2024 Conference Co-Chairs

The USDA National Agricultural Library’s Agricultural Law Information Partnership is hosting a virtual event on Thursday, September 7th, from 10:00 am - 3:00 pm (EDT) where we will look the affect climate change is having on food safety concerns. During the first hour, we will hear from guest speakers Dr. Jodi Williams, National Program Leader, Food Safety, National Institute of Food and Agriculture and Dr. Sheila Fleischhacker, National Science Liaison, National Institute of Food and Agriculture. They will discuss how climate change is impacting food safety in both direct and indirect ways; drought and extreme temperatures can limit safe water for irrigation while creating favorable growth conditions for pathogens, leading to increases in foodborne illness. Flash floods can generate chemical contaminant runoff into natural water systems, resulting in long-term effects to food systems and safety.

Beginning at 11:30 am, Jamie Flood will offer a brief  Wikipedia editing training session and editing time will focus on food safety, climate change, and the impacts of climate change.

Please register on Eventbrite where a full schedule and speaker bios can be found. The confirmation email will include the Zoom link and password to access the event. Full-event attendance is not required. For more information about the event, and to see what we will be editing, please visit the Wikipedia page. Please feel free to accept the calendar event attached to the email (it includes the Zoom link) if preferred.

The USAIN Professional Development Committee would like to announce this upcoming webinar to be presented by two of our members.

Understanding Historic U.S. Department of Agriculture Publications

The importance of government publications in the field of agriculture cannot be understated. The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) continually publishes information aimed at farmers, consumers, and the general public. However, these myriad resources can prove challenging to identify and locate. While more information is online now, the difficulties of identifying and locating these agricultural documents are still present.

This webinar will provide an overview of historical resources from the USDA’s research-producing entities. It will connect librarians to these resources by recommending access points and defining certain publications’ limitations. We aim to acquaint agriculture librarians with federal publication distribution processes and introduce newer librarians to publications’ applicability to various reference interactions. We will provide opportunities for experienced librarians to contribute their tips for accessing this type of information and hope to increase everyone's confidence in locating USDA publications.

Learning Objective(s):

● Understand basic government publication organization and access

● Identify notable USDA publications and where to find them

● Understand key USDA subject areas and their publications

● Explore ongoing and developing issues with federal agricultural information

A link to a recording will be sent out following the session to attendees that register.

Date: Wednesday, August 9, 2023, 2-3pm EDT

Speakers:

● Helen Smith, Agricultural Sciences Librarian, Penn State University

● Jen Kirk, Government Information Librarian, Utah State University

Please complete this brief Google form to receive the registration link or recording.